The CBI report calling for urgent government action to boost confidence in low-carbon energy reveals the extent to which Cameron's coalition faces a crisis of faith on its green policies (Report, 26 April). The criticism from the UK's business community, as well as by NGOs and environmental campaigners, represents a strong and coherent call for change – and demolishes the myth that environment and business are incompatible.
This government has so far failed to engage with business to deliver the transition to a low-carbon economy we so desperately need if the UK is to meet its targets on carbon emissions and renewable energy. With its misguided U-turn on subsidies for solar panels, the coalition created real uncertainty in one of the few industries to generate thousands of new jobs in recent months.
The green investment bank, one of the coalition's flagship green policies, could have been the key to unlocking the £450bn in finance for renewable energy needed in the next 15 years. But thanks to Treasury interference, it's now a bank that can't borrow.
These policy turnarounds do nothing to encourage the confidence and trust needed to attract long-term investment. And neither does the inclusion of the Climate Change Act and other key environmental laws in the government's insidious red tape challenge. Labour would have you believe it was greener. Yet after 13 years of a Labour government, the UK was getting more of its energy from fossil fuels than in 1997. Road building increased, aviation grew, and Britain languished at the bottom of the EU's renewable energy league.
Business and environmentalists are united in their call on the government to deliver a consistent message on support for renewables. Without greater clarity and certainty, the UK's massive green potential may never be realised – to the detriment of both our economy and our environment.
Green, Brighton Pavilion